Famous quotes
Quotes by famous people, credited to who said them. Your own quotes must not match any of these. More are added all the time. 1,158,269 quotes Who coined it · How we decide
EnglishItalianoPolskiעבריתFrançaisPortuguêsفارسیEspañol中文РусскийDeutschالعربيةहिन्दी日本語ΕλληνικάLatina
Barack Obama
1,038 quotes
“If you don’t have any fresh ideas, then you use stale tactics to scare the voters. If you don’t have a record to run on, then you paint your opponent as someone people should run from. You make a big election about small things.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2008 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Democratic National Convention Nomination Acceptance Speech (29 August 2008)
“By the way, I've been called worse on the basketball court. Its not a big deal.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I hope you guys are up for a fight. I hope you guys are game because I haven’t been putting up with 19 months of airplanes and hotel food and missing my babies and my wife — I didn’t put up for that stuff just to come in second.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2008 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: To supporters at a fund-raising party at Jon Bon Jovi's mansion in Duryea, Pennsylvania, (5 September 2008)
“Let's not play games. What I was suggesting — you're absolutely right that John McCain has not talked about my Muslim faith.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2008 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Obama's verbal slip fuels his critics" by Christina Bellantoni, The Washington Times (7 September 2008)
“I don't think me calling House Republican members would have been that helpful. I tend not to be that persuasive on that side of the aisle.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2008 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Interview with ABC News (10 October 2008)
“My attitude is that if the economy's good for folks from the bottom up, it's gonna be good for everybody … I think when you spread the wealth around, it's good for everybody.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2008 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Comments at an Ohio campaign stop (13 October 2008)
“Contrary to the rumors that you've heard, I was not born in a manger. I was actually born on Krypton and sent here by my father, Jor-El, to save the planet Earth.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2008 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Joking in a speech at the Al Smith Dinner in New York City (17 October 2008); making allusions Jesus and Superman, in regard to impossibly high expectations of what he might do as president.
“It is true that I want to roll back the Bush tax cuts on the very wealthiest Americans and go back to the rate that they paid under Bill Clinton. John McCain calls that socialism. What he forgets, conveniently, is that just a few years ago, he himself said those Bush tax cuts were irresponsible. He said he couldn't in good conscience support tax cuts where the benefit went to the wealthy at the expense of middle class Americans who most need the tax relief. That's his quote. Well, he was right then, and I am right now.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2008 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Comments at a campaign rally in Tampa; Florida (20 October 2008)
“I believe marriage is between a man and a woman. I am not in favor of gay marriage. But when you start playing around with constitutions, just to prohibit somebody who cares about another person, it just seems to me that’s not what America’s about. Usually, our constitutions expand liberties, they don’t contract them.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2008 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in "Barack Obama Answers Your Questions About Gay Marriage, Paying For College, More" at MTV News (1 November 2008)
“I have spoken to all of them who are living. I didn't want to get into a Nancy Reagan thing about doing any séances.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 1981 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Barack Obama apologises to Nancy Reagan after first gaffe as President-Elect" Tim Shipman, Telegraph, 08 Nov 2008. Context: Obama mentioned the fact Nancy Reagan supposedly had spiritual sessions to talk with her late h…
“The truth is that, promoting science isn't just about providing resources, it's about protecting free and open inquiry. It's about ensuring that facts and evidence are never twisted or obscured by politics or ideology. It's about listening to what our scientists have to say, even when it's inconvenient, especially when it's inconvenient. Because the highest purpose of science is the search for knowledge, truth and a greater understanding of the world around us. That will be my goal as President of the United States, and I could not have a better team to guide me in this work.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2008 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: President-elect Obama's Weekly Address (20 December 2008)
“It was a creed written into the founding documents that declared the destiny of a nation.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We the people, in order to form a more perfect union." Two hundred and twenty one years ago, in a hall that still stands across the street, a group of men gathered and, with these simple words, launched America's improbable experiment in democracy.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“This union may never be perfect, but generation after generation has shown that it can always be perfected. And today, whenever I find myself feeling doubtful or cynical about this possibility, what gives me the most hope is the next generation — the young people whose attitudes and beliefs and openness to change have already made history in this election.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Partnership and cooperation among nations is not a choice; it is the one way, the only way, to protect our common security and advance our common humanity. That is why the greatest danger of all is to allow new walls to divide us from one another. The walls between old allies on either side of the Atlantic cannot stand. The walls between the countries with the most and those with the least cannot stand. The walls between races and tribes; natives and immigrants; Christian and Muslim and Jew cannot stand. These now are the walls we must tear down.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“History reminds us that walls can be torn down. But the task is never easy. True partnership and true progress requires constant work and sustained sacrifice. They require sharing the burdens of development and diplomacy; of progress and peace. They require allies who will listen to each other, learn from each other and, most of all, trust each other.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“People of Berlin — and people of the world — the scale of our challenge is great. The road ahead will be long. But I come before you to say that we are heirs to a struggle for freedom. We are a people of improbable hope. With an eye toward the future, with resolve in our hearts, let us remember this history, and answer our destiny, and remake the world once again.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I need you to go out there and talk to your friends and talk to your neighbors. I want you to talk to 'em whether they're independent or whether they are Republican. I want you to argue with 'em and get in their face and if they tell you 'well, we're not sure he stands on guns' I want you to say 'he believes in the second amendment' If they tell you 'well he's gonna raise your taxes' you say 'no he's not he's gonna lower 'em'. You are my ambassadors. You guys are the ones who can make the case.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2008 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: 18 September 2008 upload to YT
“The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even in one term. But, America, I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you, we as a people will get there.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as president. And we know the government can't solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“This victory alone is not the change we seek. It is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It can't happen without you, without a new spirit of service, a new spirit of sacrifice. So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of responsibility, where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves but each other.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“In this country, we rise or fall as one nation, as one people. Let's resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“To those who would tear the world down: We will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security: We support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright: Tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“This is our moment. This is our time, to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth, that, out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope. And where we are met with cynicism and doubts and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes, we can. Thank you. God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Elections have consequences, and at the end of the day, I won. So I think on that one I trump you.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Transparency and the rule of law will be the touchstones of this presidency.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: At the signing of executive orders on first full day as president, as reported in transparency, Obama OKs ethics guidelines" at CNN.com (21 January 2009)
“Guantanamo will be closed no later than one year from now.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Barack Obama signs order to close Guantánamo Bay prison camp", The Telegraph (22 January 2009)
“You can't just listen to Rush Limbaugh and get things done.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: In reference to an attack on him by Rush Limbaugh who declared that he hoped Barack Obama would fail as president. "Barack Obama picks a fight with Rush Limbaugh as bipartisan spirit crumbles" in The Times (24 January 2…
“Look, I'm at the start of my administration. One nice thing about the situation I find myself in is that I will be held accountable. You know, I've got four years. A year from now I think people are going to see that we're starting to make some progress. But there's still going to be some pain out there. If I don't have this done in three years, then there's going to be a one-term proposition.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: FLASHBACK: Obama: My Presidency Will Be ‘A One-Term Proposition’ If Economy Doesn't Turn In 3 Years (1 February 2009)
“So we have a choice to make. We can once again let Washington's bad habits stand in the way of progress. Or we can pull together and say that in America, our destiny isn't written for us but by us. We can place good ideas ahead of old ideological battles, and a sense of purpose above the same narrow partisanship. We can act boldly to turn crisis into opportunity and, together, write the next great chapter in our history and meet the test of our time.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Action Americans Need" in The Washington Post (5 February 2009), p. A17
“Then you get the argument, "Well, this is not a stimulus bill, this is a spending bill." What do you think a stimulus is? That's the whole point! No, seriously, that's the point!”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Speech to Democrats in Virginia about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (5 February 2009) - YouTube video
“So tonight, I ask every American to commit to at least one year or more of higher education or career training. This can be a community college or a four-year school, vocational training or an apprenticeship. But whatever the training may be, every American will need to get more than a high school diploma.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: First address to Congress (24 February 2009)
“But while our economy may be weakened and our confidence shaken; though we are living through difficult and uncertain times, tonight I want every American to know this: We will rebuild, we will recover, and the United States of America will emerge stronger than before.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: First address to Congress (24 February 2009)
“I've been practicing. I bowled a 129, It was like special olympics or something.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, asked by Mr. Leno if he had been practicing bowling in his Washington Office (March 2009) "YouTube
“Our immediate task, however, is the critical work of confronting the economic crisis. As I've said, we've passed through an era of profound irresponsibility; now we cannot afford half-measures, and we cannot go back to the kind of risk-taking that leads to bubbles that inevitably bust. So we have a choice. We can shape our future, or let events shape it for us. And if we want to succeed, we can't fall back on the stale debates and old divides that won't move us forward.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Barack Obama: "The President's News Conference With Prime Minister Gordon Brown of the United Kingdom in London, England," April 1, 2009. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project.
“Don’t shortchange the future, because of fear in the present.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Barack Obama: "The President's News Conference With Prime Minister Gordon Brown of the United Kingdom in London, England," April 1, 2009. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project.
“I believe in American exceptionalism, just as I suspect that the Brits believe in British exceptionalism and the Greeks believe in Greek exceptionalism.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: News Conference By President Obama at Palaiz de la Musique et Des Congres in Strasbourg, France (4 April 2009)
“Manmohan Singh is a wise, wonderful man.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On Manmohan Singh, (4 April 2009)
“I've said before that one of the great strengths of the United States is--although, as I mentioned, we have a very large Christian population, we do not consider ourselves a Christian nation or a Jewish nation or a Muslim nation; we consider ourselves a nation of citizens who are bound by ideals and a set of values.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Barack Obama: "The President's News Conference With President Abdullah Gul of Turkey in Ankara, Turkey," April 6, 2009. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project.
“We will convey our deep appreciation for the Islamic faith, which has done so much over the centuries to shape the world – including in my own country. The United States has been enriched by Muslim Americans. Many other Americans have Muslims in their families or have lived in a Muslim-majority country – I know, because I am one of them.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Remarks by President Obama to the Turkish Parliament (April 6, 2009)
“Now, before I begin, I'd just like to clear the air about that little controversy everybody was talking about a few weeks back. I have to tell you, I really thought this was much ado about nothing, but I do think we all learned an important lesson. I learned never again to pick another team over the Sun Devils in my NCAA brackets. It won't happen again. President Crow and the board of regents will soon learn all about being audited by the IRS.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Commencement Address at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona (13 May 2009)
“If you actually took the number of Muslims Americans, we'd be one of the largest Muslim countries in the world.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Interview with Laura Haim, Canal Plus, France., White House Library (1 June 2009)
“If you like the plan you have, you can keep it. If you like the doctor you have, you can keep your doctor, too.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: President's weekly address (6 June 2009)
“Now, make no mistake: History is on the side of these brave Africans, not with those who use coups or change constitutions to stay in power. Africa doesn't need strongmen; it needs strong institutions. Now, America will not seek to impose any system of government on any other nation. The essential truth of democracy is that each nation determines its own destiny.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Barack Obama: "Address to the Ghanaian Parliament in Accra, Ghana," July 11, 2009. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project.
“We toured Cape Coast Castle, a place for centuries where men, women, and children of this nation and surrounding areas were sold into slavery. I'll never forget the image of my two young daughters, the descendants of Africans and African Americans, walking through those doors of no return, but then walking back those doors of return. It was a remarkable reminder that while the future is unknowable, the winds always blow in the direction of human progress.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Barack Obama: "Remarks Prior to Departure from Accra, Ghana," July 11, 2009. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project.
“My administration has a job to do as well. That job is to get this economy back on its feet. That's my job, and it's a job I gladly accept. I love these folks who helped get us in this mess and then suddenly say, "Well this is Obama's economy." That's fine. GIVE IT TO ME. My job is to solve problems, not to stand on the sidelines and carp and gripe. So, I welcome the job. I want the responsibility.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: President Obama, July 14, 2009
“Now, I don't know, not having been there and not seeing all the facts, what role race played in that. But I think it's fair to say, number one, any of us would be pretty angry; number two, that the Cambridge police acted stupidly in arresting somebody when there was already proof that they were in their own home; and, number three, what I think we know separate and apart from this incident is that there's a long history in this country of African-Americans and Latinos being stopped by law enforcement disproportionately. That's just a fact.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Press conference addressing Henry Louis Gates's arrest by the Cambridge, MA police. (22 July 2009)
“These rituals remind us of the principles that we hold in common, and Islam’s role in advancing justice, progress, tolerance, and the dignity of all human beings.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Ramadan Message Washington, DC (21 August 2009)
“We must remember that the greatest price of this conflict is not paid by us. It is paid by the Israeli girl in Sderot who closes her eyes in fear that a rocker will take her life in the night. It is paid by he Palestinian boy in Gaza who has no clean water and no country to call his own. These are God's children. And after all of the politics and all of the posturing, this is about the right of every human being to live with dignity and security. This is a lesson embedded in the three great faiths that call one small slice of Earth the Holy Land.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: United Nations, General Debate of the 64th Session (2009), United States of America, H.E. Mr. Barack Obama, President p. 6, (23 September 2009)
“Democracy cannot be imposed on any nation from the outside. Each society must search for its own path, and no path is perfect.”
Barack Obama (born 1961) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: United Nations, General Debate of the 64th Session (2009), United States of America, H.E. Mr. Barack Obama, President p. 6, 23 September 2009